As the United States approaches its 2014 deadline for military withdrawal from Afghanistan, one often overshadowed aspect of the conflict is the hard-won progress made by previously marginalized segments of the Afghan population, particularly women, girls, and young people. Afghanistan has one of the highest proportions of young people in the world – many of whom have known only war. The median age of the population is 15.6 years old, the median age of marriage is 18, and half of mothers surveyed during a country-wide mortality survey had their first child when they were teenagers.

Dr. Bogaletch Gebre is the recipient of this year's King Badouin African Development Prize. She is a passionate women’s rights activist from Ethiopia and has been recognized for her efforts to transform the lives of women through innovation and altering traditional conceptions of a woman’s role in shaping her political, economic, and social destiny.